Minneapolis narrows candidate pool to three for Downtown East public park

The City of Minneapolis has narrowed the pool to three landscape architecture firms competing to design the 4.2-acre public park next to the new Vikings Stadium.

A review team will interview the remaining candidates vying for the high-profile green project called The Commons, formerly known as The Yard.

The three teams are:

Olin/Snow Kreilich Architects

Hargreaves Associates/Damon Farber Associates/VJAA

WORKSHOP Ken Smith/Perkins + Will

The city received 14 proposals from both local and national firms by the Oct. 15 deadline.

Representatives from the various stakeholders in the Downtown East redevelopment will compose the review team. That group will then make a recommendation by mid-November for which firm they believe should be awarded the two-block project. Minneapolis City Council is expected to approve a landscape architect by the end of the year.